4th December 2017

Autism is a neurological disorder that can be characterized by impaired communication and social interaction. Children who suffer from autism also show repetitive and restricted behaviour. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or simply Autism, affects the brain which results in growth and development disorder. Even though there are medicines for it which can control this disorder, however, autism cannot be cured and is a lifelong progression. But that does not mean that children with autism should be kept in isolation. They can take part in the daily activities and should be encouraged to be a part of the mainstream society. The caregivers, however, need to have the proper training in order to deal with the children with autism in the correct way. Autism training courses in India are gaining wide popularity now as more people are gaining insight into the subject. There are several symptoms that the teachers and the parents might keep in mind. Some of them are as follows:

• Sometimes children with autism make no eye contact and tend to remain isolated or aloof from the rest of the children or group.
• Some children might make inconsistent eye contact with other people while communicating.
• Some might have sporadic engagement with the environment around them.
• There are some autistic children who do not speak much and might have impaired speech and others might have advanced speech as well. Their verbal abilities may vary.
• Their intellectual abilities might be a bit varied too. Some might show symptoms of mental disorders and others might have superior intellectual abilities in some selected areas. Some children may show superior skills in some areas like paintings, puzzles and so on. They can grow up to be talented artists; all they need is proper guidance.

Therefore, early diagnosis is of utmost importance so that all the guidance can be provided to them for proper intellectual development. Checklist for Autism Among Toddlers (CHAT) has been designed as a screening tool for the toddlers. Early diagnosis enables you to adopt the suitable therapy for the children to promote their development. In order to deal with these children, you need a combination of both behavioural and cognitive therapy along with medication. Teachers interact a lot with the children from an early age. Therefore, they play an important role in the identification of the autistic children. Also, teachers dealing with these children need to be aware of the proper ways of dealing with them. You need to have a certificate in special education in order to be able to deal with them.

SEN courses for teachers or Special Education Needs courses can be taken up by anyone. The aspiring teachers looking to get an in-depth knowledge are not the only ones who can enroll for these courses. Parents can also enroll for these courses in order to cater to their children to the best of their abilities and help them achieve their potential. Both teachers and parents spend a long part of the day with the children, hence their training and knowledge will come handy here.